The Olympics

For the first time in ages, we have cable plugged in to our television. The price for internet at our temporary digs is the same as for internet and basic cable, so we added it. It will be nice during football season. It is also giving me the option to watch the Olympics.

I was in junior high when the Olympics came to Los Angeles in 1984. That was an exciting two weeks for me: I was glued to the tv for the entire time, and I clipped pictures from all the sports magazines so I could tack them to my wall. “Obsessed” is not a strong enough word to describe me during that time.

Even after the closing ceremonies, it was the focus of my attention. I managed to work the games into most of my school projects for the next year.

While I’ve watched some Olympic games since then, it’s hard to match the intensity of a twelve year old. In future years it started to feel like the personal interest stories were taking over. I only wanted to see the sports – you know, the reason why the Olympics exist.

My stay in England raised the coverage bar too high for American television to meet. For the Winter Olympics of 2002, I was able to see every single competitor in every sport, not just the top people. The segments that weren’t the actual games were explanations of the sport that made the viewing more enjoyable – and why there is a soft spot in my heart for curling to this day. As with regular British programming, this coverage seemed to be Tammy perfect.

I’ve watched a little of these games, but I quickly gave up on the evening telecasts since they were all reruns and the internet is full of spoilers. On Saturday, I tried watching, but after two personal interest stories in a row, I abandoned the attempt.

I don’t know that it is possible for me to return to my pre-teen enthusiasm level. It definitely wouldn’t be worth returning to junior high to restore it!

Is anyone enthusiastically watching the Games? or Am I alone in not liking the personal interest aspect?

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